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Living Free - June 9, 2011

"Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed." James 5:16 NIV

Thoughts for Today

We need to say "I did it!" to God and to ourselves when we've done something wrong. We also need to say "I did it!" to anyone we have offended or hurt through our sin. Today's scripture tells us if we confess our sins to each other and pray for each other we will be healed. Spiritual healing involves reconciliation with others.

When we confess our sin against someone, we need to accept responsibility for our actions. Our confession shouldn't sound like this: "I did this and I'm sorry. But I did it because you . . ." Instead, we should state what we've done without blaming anyone or anything else, without trying to justify or minimize it. We should ask the offended person's forgiveness. If the person is a Christian, we should pray together.

Consider this …

Confessing and forgiving works two ways. Jesus said if another believer sins against us, we should privately point out the offense. If that person listens and confesses it, "you have won that person back." He goes on to tell the next steps to take if the person won't confess (Matthew 18:15-17).

These scriptures leave no doubt about God's desire for us to confess our sins to each other. Is there someone you need to talk to?

Prayer

Lord, I have confessed this sin to you and know you have forgiven me. But I know you don't want me to stop there. Give me the courage to confess to the one I've offended so our relationship can be healed. In Jesus' name . . .

These thoughts were drawn from …

Stepping into Freedom: A Christ-Centered Twelve-Step Program by Jimmy Ray Lee, D.Min. This twelve-step program is suggested for use in support groups, recovery groups and home groups. It offers help for anyone struggling with a life-controlling problem like drug addiction, alcoholism, sexual addiction, gambling or workaholism. Note: This curriculum was written especially for small groups and we encourage people to use it that way. However, it can also be used effectively as a personal study for individuals or couples.

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